The State of the Revolution
More of a State of Nintendo actually, but how could I resist a title like that? Although Ingrid (who blatantly stole my article…accidentally) wrote up a piece on the Revolution already today, here’s my broader peek at the world of N.
Nintendo continues to enjoy great success in Japan with their player on the portable gaming market: the Nintendo DS. It has sold a fabulous 3.5 million units; almost double its closest competition, the Sony PSP, which has yet to crack the 2.0 million mark. The strength of the DS is not in multimedia functionality, but its focus on compelling, well crafted gaming titles and trendy hits such as Nintendogs. Hype for the new Revolution is overwhelming, even at this early stage in the game (release is estimated at late 2006) and popular media like Time magazine are heralding the dawn of a new gaming era.
Marketing-wise Nintendo has been doing some very interesting things. they’ve basically told the graphics perfectionists and power cravers that the Revolution will not be able to compete on a purely technical level with either the PS3 or the 360. A bold move in a hyper competitive technological race, but it serves to confirm the platform that Nintendo advertising has been running on from the very beginning: quality games for both non-gamers and gamers alike; something different, and multi-demographically applicable. Nintendo’s sales and marketing chief Reggie Fils-Aime told CNN recently that Nintendo would continue to play the value card and offer gamers a more affordable option in gaming hardware, meaning that the Revolution will take less out of your bank account than Sony or M$.
Hats off to Nintendo for putting their money where their mouth is and actually trying to make some sort of token effort to show female gamers that they matter. Take this ad from Nintendo’s Australian campaign for example, where above the tag line “You’ve either got it, or you don’t”, we’ve got both a male and a female forearm hard at work on developing their gaming carpel tunnel syndrome. It could, of course, be Nintendo’s attempt to appeal to the experimental cross-dresser that inhabits the male soul, but we’ll go with the fact that it’s a woman so that we can all sleep a little easier at night.
Games-wise, Nintendo has been the only one to really turn my head as far as creating new games (not building on past successes) goes. Sure, some of them are bound to flop, but you know what? I really really respect them for going out on a limb and giving them a try. They’re making non-traditional games to go after non-traditional gamers, and they’ve certainly impressed me. They seem to pick up on societal hotspots quite quickly and try to work them into their strategy. Examples of what I’m talking about? Sudoku, that number puzzle game that you can’t get away from these days, is supposedly coming to the GBA (why not DS, WHY?), and they’ve even cooked up (clever me!) a game for the foodies amongst us that will allow you to create the world’s most fabulous stir fry, using the revolution controller to skillfully flip your veggies and keep your noodle al dente.
Details are pretty slim at this point, but I’ll try to keep you all in the loop. The Revolution is looking more and more like a make or break venture for Nintendo in the console business. Their strong hold on the portable market will no doubt help to bank roll development in other areas and may be able to absorb a slightly less-than-stellar reception of the Revolution, but a disasterous flop spells a whole lot of trouble for them, particularly since the commercial failure of their last effort, the GameCube.
